What pricing leaders are planning, and where execution still falls short
Pricing continues to carry more of the growth burden, but ambition is again outpacing delivery. Based on responses from 337 executives across five industries, the 2026 Executive Pricing Benchmarks reveal how organizations are setting aggressive revenue and margin targets for 2026, and where pricing strategy, governance, and execution must evolve to close persistent gaps.
This report combines 2025 performance benchmarks, a 2026 outlook, and tactical best practices used by higher-performing organizations.
1. Pricing ambition continues to outpace results
Organizations are entering 2026 with renewed confidence, despite missing revenue and EBITDA targets in 2025. Average revenue growth targets have risen to 8.2%, nearly 2 points above 2025 actuals, with pricing expected to do most of the work. Companies are planning net price increases of ~8.0%, driven by 6.3% average list price increases and tighter discount discipline. Margin recovery remains a priority, with EBITDA targets rising to 27.4%, even as prior targets were not fully achieved.
2. Price-led growth remains the dominant strategy
While balanced growth is gaining attention, pricing continues to be the primary growth lever. 46% of companies expect price-led growth in 2026, up from 43% in 2025, while balanced growth increases to 27%, signaling intent more than execution. Volume and mix-led growth remains concentrated in cyclical, asset-heavy sectors where pricing power is more constrained.
3. Discount discipline is improving, but margin pressure persists
Executives are relying more heavily on discount control, though gains are still being absorbed by cost inflation and execution drag. 46% of companies plan to reduce discounts in 2026, versus just 12% expecting increases, with an average planned reduction of -1.7%. Discount tightening is most pronounced in Software and Technology and Consumer Goods, yet margin recovery remains uneven across industries.
4. Pricing strategy is maturing faster than execution
Pricing approaches are becoming more sophisticated, but infrastructure and governance continue to lag ambition. Value-based and market-based pricing now dominate across most industries, with net price growth increasingly driven by mix optimization, bundling, and discount discipline, rather than blunt list price moves. Despite this progress, most organizations still rely on spreadsheets and fragmented systems, limiting scalability and consistency. Companies using integrated or AI-supported pricing analytics consistently outperform peers on both revenue growth and EBITDA.
5. AI is accelerating pricing decisions, not replacing them
Top performers are using AI to sharpen pricing decisions, not automate them away. AI is most commonly applied to forecasting, segmentation, elasticity analysis, and deal guidance, within a human-in-the-loop model that preserves strategic oversight. Early success is tied to focused, high-impact use cases, clean and connected data, and embedding AI directly into existing pricing workflows rather than standalone tools.
Across industries, pricing is doing more of the work than ever before. Yet revenue and margin gaps persist. The data shows that stronger outcomes are not driven by higher price increases alone, but by better governance, sharper execution, and more frequent pricing review cycles.
Organizations that treat pricing as an operating rhythm, rather than an annual event, consistently outperform peers.
Detailed 2025 vs. 2026 benchmark comparisons
Industry-specific insights across five major sectors
Tactical best practices for value-based pricing, bundling, AI adoption, and governance
Practical guidance on what separates top pricing performers from the rest
Download the full 2026 Executive Pricing Benchmarks to explore the complete data, charts, and execution frameworks.
Revenue Management Labs conducted the 2026 Executive Pricing Benchmarks Survey through an online survey between November and December 2025, gathering insights from 330+ senior leaders across Europe and North America. Respondents included Vice Presidents, Directors, and C-suite executives, all with direct responsibility for pricing strategy and financial performance.
The survey benchmarks pricing performance from 2025 alongside revenue, pricing, and margin targets for 2026. Questions were designed to assess how organizations are using pricing to drive growth, manage margin pressure, and adapt to changing demand and cost conditions across industries.
In addition to financial outcomes, the survey captures pricing strategy maturity, including value-based pricing adoption, discount discipline, bundling, analytics capabilities, governance models, and the growing use of AI in pricing decision-making. Results are analyzed both in aggregate and by industry to highlight where pricing ambition is accelerating and where execution gaps remain.
58% of respondents represent companies with annual revenues of US$500 million or more*.
Software and technology companies are entering 2026 with growth focused pricing strategies, but execution challenges remain. The 2026 Executive Pricing Benchmarks – Software & Technology report reveals how leading firms are shifting toward value based pricing, disciplined monetization, and retention driven growth to close the gap between pricing intent and financial outcomes.
Business Services leaders are entering 2026 with ambitious growth and margin targets, even as pricing execution, governance, and operational discipline lag behind strategic intent. The Business Services benchmarks provide data-driven insight into where pricing must evolve to support sustainable expansion and profitability.
Industrial leaders enter 2026 with ambitious pricing and growth targets, but execution gaps continue to leave value on the table.
The 2026 Executive Pricing Benchmarks reveal how pricing leaders are planning for growth, margin recovery, and AI-enabled execution. Based on insights from 337 executives, the report shows why pricing ambition continues to rise, and what it takes to translate targets into results.
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